Chereads / The Mysterious Journey / Chapter 8 - Chapter 8: Unexpected Encounter, Unexpected Answer 

Chapter 8 - Chapter 8: Unexpected Encounter, Unexpected Answer 

A shining emerald spell swept across the room like thunderbolt, leaving a series of ear-piercing sounds in the air, as if cheering for the death and despair bestowed upon it by its caster.

The radiance of the killing curse was so pure that it caused a sense of absurdity in the hearts of the battling wizard and the secretly observing third party…

Was this truly the killing curse?

None of them felt any distorted malice in the curse; instead, it exuded a kind of grandeur, as if announcing the stature and majesty of death to the world. Even the sense of despair it exuded was more like an interpretation of death.

"It was as if it was not a mortal who wielded the scythe of death but death itself had arrived to preach the meaning of death!"

The third party, who had been hidden since the beginning, murmured his brief enlightenment, and even had an urge to reconsider his understanding of black magic in his life.

At the scene, all three people who had seen Voldemort before came to the same judgment at the same moment…

While the strength was not as good as the second-generation Dark Lord, who had reached his peak, however, in terms of realm, it was definitely unprecedented.

"No! No! No! No! This is impossible!"

Looking at the killing curse flying towards himself, and feeling the power capable of killing him, John's mad eyes were replaced by endless fear. He did not understand, how could his imperius curse fail? How could his ambition come to an abrupt end? How could this "guinea pig" suddenly have such power.

However, the ingenious timing of the killing curse had, at the time it was casted, locked onto John.

The green light hit John's body and reaped John's life.

"Thump."

The corpse fell on its back, and unlike the death of other wizard from killing curse, the last expression on John's face was not of frightened nor unwilling, but had a kind of pilgrim-like calmness and enlightenment, which was though at the moment between life and death, he felt a ray of truth about death.

"You…"

Snape could only utter a word, not knowing how to proceed.

He felt incredulous. After experiencing such a drastic change, he couldn't help but lose his composure for the second time that day, which rarely happened.

Looking blankly at the boy in front of him, Snape had an unconscious impulse to point his wand at him. This was an instinctive warning against danger.

But soon his movement was stopped by an old hand that was suddenly placed on his shoulder.

"Calm down, Snape, calm down. Trust me, and trust the boy."

Hearing this old magnetic voice, Qin Feng's calm green eyes also saw the old man, who had lifted the invisibility spell, behind Snape.

The old man was tall and thin, neatly dressed in an elegant purplish red velvet suit and a pair of high-heeled boots. Qin Feng even had to raise his head to see the old man's gaze on him.

He had a thin cheekbone and an awkward long-bridged nose, as though it had been broken a few times. Long silver white hair and beard that fell like waterfalls on his back and chest respectively, it looked natural and not sloppy.

The great wizard had an unapproachable demeanor, much like a sage. Though he seemed aware of it, he chose to wear a small, amusing wizard hat. However, the overall effect on others was truly dumbfounding.

However, what attracted Qin Feng the most was those deep blue eyes, which were sharp enough to pierce into people's hearts, but under the filter of the half-moon glasses, they appeared kind and peaceful.

With such distinctive features, a name immediately appeared in Qin Feng's mind, however, he had yet to obtain the other party's confirmation.

"Hello, child. I have to admit, you are one of the few people who managed to left a deep impression on me from the very first meeting."

The old man's expression was complicated, the magnetic voice with no magic imbued gave an impression of an old lion which had years of baptism.

Qin Feng calmly looked at the great wizard who was famous in the magic world. He could not only see the old man's worry but also a kind worry and deep sadness.

There's no need to be surprised. While Qin Feng might not empathize with this feeling, it doesn't mean he can't observe and interpret these emotions in his own way. Without this ability, he wouldn't be able to integrate into society normally without being perceived as abnormal.

"This is Severus Snape. I've heard that you are the new head of Slytherin at Hogwarts. If I've guessed correctly, you must be Headmaster Dumbledore, the greatest wizard of our time, aren't you?"

Qin Feng did not immediately confirm anything, instead he first confirmed his guess on the old man.

"Ah…, it seemed that we have not introduced ourselves, you guessed correctly child, I am Albus Dumbledore, if you are willing you can call me Dumbledore. Child, can you tell me your name?"

Qin Feng was stunned for a moment. Before Dumbledore asked this question, he had never considered his name in his new life. But at this moment, with the touch of spirituality, He intuitively chose a name.

"Maple, Mr. Dumbledore, I chose this name myself, no surname."

"Maple? A beautiful name."

Dumbledore blinked his blue eyes, paused for a moment, as though worried about something, but in the end still raised his own question to the child in front of him.

"Then, little Maple, would you tell me, why did you do that?"

Hearing this question, Maple was silent for a moment, he was clear of what Dumbledore was asking. His logical analysis had already told him the best solution, which was to confess everything that could be confessed.

Because facing this sage who had lived for a very long time, any concealment and deception were the most unwise of choices. On the contrary, by showing the greatest sincerity, it could become the basis of establishing a good relationship.

After confirming the communication strategy, Maple lifted his head, even lifted a part of the Occlumency, and answered Dumbledore frankly:

"Death is despair, Mr. Dumbledore, so I do not want Professor Snape to die, that's all. In order to achieve this, I chose the option with the least risk, which was to inflict the greatest harm on John in the shortest time. However, I never had any experience in casting normal spells with a wand, so I used the one that suited me best."

"Most suitable?"

Dumbledore chewed on this word, and the green light that refreshed his understanding once again appeared in his mind. He had to admit, if even Maple was not qualified for this unforgivable curse, then there would probably be no one in this world who was eligible to use that spell.

Although admitting it intellectually was one thing, Dumbledore still felt a huge sense of absurdity and uncontrollable rage in his heart. At this moment, for the first time, he felt for the first the urge to not only kill someone but also had the impulse to burn them to ashes…

How much suffering had Maple undergone at the hands of John, for Maple to be able to use the killing curse and the accompanying death with such calmness?!

Even he, a great wizard, could only sigh at such a state!

Dumbledore would not forget the pure and inhuman despair contained within that killing curse.

"Death is Despair", haha! I estimated that no wizard would even have this thought, even if they could, they would not be willing. He was even more unwilling to associate this sentence with a five-year-old child!

"Mr. Dumbledore?"

Suddenly, a clear sound brought Albus back to his senses. Only then did he realize that he had unknowingly pulled off a handful of his beard.

"Ah, I'm sorry, little Maple, please forgive an old man's occasional distraction."

Glancing at Severus who was also stunned, Dumbledore shifted his gaze back to the cold-tempered boy in front of him. He was suddenly unwilling to look directly into those always clear green eyes.

"It's all over, little Maple, it's all over."

The corners of Dumbledore's eyes were a little moist, but he still squatted down in front of Maple, blue eyes met with green eyes, with a slight trembling voice he said something that was both a declaration and a promise.

"Little Maple, is there anything you want?"

Looking at Maple, who had been calm from the very beginning, Dumbledore was reminded of wizards and muggles from his memories who were on the verge of committing suicide. This sense of uncertainty prompted Albus to pose a question.

He hoped Maple could find even a tiny desire, something that would keep the boy alive.

However, Maple's candid response once again surpassed both Dumbledore's and Snape's expectations.